idoyo
JF-Expert Member
- Jan 13, 2013
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Ripoti iliyopewa jina la 'Seizing Africa's Energy and Climate Opportunities 2015', inaonyesha kuwa itachukua wastani wa miaka minane kwa Mtanzania wa kawaida kutumia kiasi cha umeme kama kile anachotumia Mmarekani wa kawaida katika mwezi.
kutoka corporate digest
Though international community has set the goal of achieving universal access to modern energy by 2030, the sub-Saharan Africa is not on track to achieve that target. According to a new report by the Kofi Annan's Africa Progress Panel, it will take Africa until 2080 to achieve universal access to electricity.
The report, dubbed ‘Seizing Africa's Energy and Climate Opportunities 2015,' shows that it would take the average Tanzanian eight years to use as much electricity as an average American consumes in a month.
In sub-Saharan Africa, 621 million people lack access to electricity - and this number is rising. This size of the market points to significant opportunities for investment and household savings.
According to the report, Africa's highly centralized energy systems only benefit the rich and bypass the poor.
Released in Cape Town last week, the report notes that bottlenecks in the energy sector and power shortages are costing the region two to four per cent of GDP annually, undermining sustainable economic growth, jobs and investment. It calls for heavy investments by governments in the energy sector.
"One of the greatest barriers to the transformation of the power sector is the low level of tax collection and the failure of governments to build credible tax systems," the report stated.
Domestic taxes can cover almost half the financing gap in sub-Saharan Africa, and redirecting $21 billion spent on subsidies to wasteful utilities and kerosene to productive energy investment, social protection and targeted connectivity for the poor would show that governments are ready to do things differently.
"I urge African leaders to take that step," said Mr. Annan.
Additional revenues can be mobilized by stemming the hemorrhage of finance lost through illicit financial transfers, narrowing opportunities for tax evasion and borrowing cautiously on bond markets.
The report notes that energy systems in Africa are chronically under-financed, as about three-quarters of government spending is allocated to operations and maintenance, leaving little scope for investment in an expanded, more efficient and equitable energy system.
Two-thirds of the energy infrastructure that should be in place by 2030 has yet to be built, while demand for energy in Africa is set to surge, fueled by economic growth, demographic change and urbanization.